Persuasive Essay On Extending School Hours

Schools need to be improved, but extending the school day is not the answer. First, schools should find a way to make improvements with the amount of time they already have. It’s not about the extended school hours it’s about what you do with the time you have in a normal day. Schools should maximize the time they already have in a normal school day. Longer doesn’t necessarily mean better.

Most American students now go to school for 180 six-hour days, which is 1080 total hours. Senator Kennedy’s initiative to extend the school day proposed increasing each student’s school time by 30% - a radical increase. A school day extended by 30% would be about 7.8 hours. A school year extended by 30% would be about 234 days (Word Generation 3.11, 2012). Some students think it’s crucial to have a long summer vacation. Kids still need their breaks to relax. Longer school days will shorten the days for

When students are too tired or mentally exhausted to concentrate, the last hour of the day becomes useless. Some students, even as old as eighth-graders, suffer from post-lunch attention deficit syndrome and aren't mentally prepared to take on an additional hour of classwork (Tucker, Kristine. Demand Media. Retrieved on December 13, 2015). They are already tired after lunch. Extending school days also cuts into time families are together.

Extended school days means that teachers will be required to work longer hours or additional teachers must be hired to work the extra time. Teachers unions have expressed that they don't want to work longer hours. Teachers already arrive early to prepare for class, stay late to record grades, spend extra time preparing lessons and attend after-hours teacher meetings and parent-teacher conferences. (Tucker, Kristine. Demand Media. Retrieved on December 13, 2015). If teachers are asked to work a longer day, they should be paid for